Reinforcement of structures that have a cavity by insertion of a reinforcement device into the cavity is a popular approach employed in many applications. For some automotive vehicle applications, it has become popular in recent years to employ a structural foam as part of the reinforcement. See e.g., U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,111,899; 7,025,409; 6,920,693; 6,890,021; 6,467,384; and 5,884,960, all incorporated by reference.
Reinforcement of vehicle door assemblies and rockers traditionally has employed the placement of sheet metal bulkhead support members in a hollow cavity defined in a sill beam. See, e.g., U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,192,071; 6,053,564, incorporated by reference; see also, U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,147,272; and 6,354,656, incorporated by reference. This has commonly involved the manufacture of multiple stampings, and a labor intensive assembly process.
An example of a porous container through which polymeric material is foamed is described in published U.S. Patent Application Nos. 20050194706, and 20050081383, incorporated by reference.
Notwithstanding the above, there remains a need for improved reinforcement devices and processes, especially for use in structural reinforcement of automotive vehicles.